Talk:Girl Meets STEM/@comment-26999065-20160117090619
First, I am truly marveling at how involved and articulate this 14-year-old girl seems to be. I haven’t read anything about it, but I wonder what her IQ might be – not that IQ is the absolute measure of intelligence or future success or anything like that, but it seems like it must be pretty high to know about, let alone deeply care about some rather adult issues at her age. Just a few months ago wasn’t she expressing her concerns about kissing for the first time? Now she’s what? Talking about sexual relations on twitter as if she is in one or soon plans to be and so she actually knows of what she is speaking? Is it theory or experience for her? We can’t really be sure, but she claims to be a lot like Riley, so I’d still guess it’s more theory at 14 years old. Perhaps it’s her social wisdom more than her intelligence that is more impressive, but we know so little about what is actually going on. She may be coming up with all of this on her own, or heavily influenced by others – we can’t know for sure. Her sexual orientation, however, is not really something others can choose for her. Contrary to many fools who believe otherwise, sexual orientation is probably some brain chemistry that’s hardwired into the developing brain during prenatal development. The majority of males are hardwired to be attracted to females and vice versa. Our species would have a tough time reproducing and surviving if this were otherwise. But sometimes, a male or female is hardwired differently and is attracted to the same sex. Also, some are to varying degrees attracted to both genders. So sexual orientation is just brain chemistry that's hardwired into our brains. It’s determined before we are born – though it may not manifest itself clearly until we approach or pass through puberty. My point – sexual orientation is not a choice. It’s a realization. One day something changes and you realize which gender(s) you are attracted to. For those who still claim it is a choice, I simply ask them if they are EQUALLY attracted to both men and women then and despite being sexually aroused by members of both genders, they choose to sexually confine themselves to one gender, typically their opposite gender. They usually deny equal attraction to both genders, so I point out that without that, it’s not really a choice. I didn’t choose to be attracted to women. I just am and have been since I was about 12 years old. I simply imagine that’s the way it works for most everybody else – they realize their sexual orientation – they don’t choose it. Though I don’t have evidence for these numbers, I tend to believe that throughout human history this breaks down to about 90% heterosexual, 1% homosexual, and 9% have varying degrees of bi-sexuality. The exact numbers are rather unimportant here, so don't argue about which exact numbers you think represent reality - that just misses the point. Whatever the percentages, THIS is, therefore, what is NATURAL for the human race, and calling anything other than heterosexuality “unnatural” demonstrates a degree of ignorance, IMO. Some are saying Rowan came out this weekend – but from what I’ve read, I’m not 100% convinced she did. She seems deliberately vague on the matter, leaving it open ended so she could go one way, or the other, or both, at some future point. But mostly it’s like she’s making a social statement about it and how sexual orientation and freedom from negative judgments or persecutions about one’s sexual orientation are VVV important to her. Like feminism, it’s an important issue to her, and with intersectional feminism, it is often impossible to completely separate the issue of women’s rights and one’s right to be of any sexual orientation. Many matters in human relations are so inexorably linked together that often you can’t get a clear picture of one without also discussing the other. So it’s sometimes hard to discuss feminism without also discussing gay rights. Unfortunately, this intersectional feminism makes it a little too easy to classify something as a feminist issue when it’s really not. It may impact feminist’s issues, but it’s not really a feminist issue. Abortion, for example, is strictly speaking not really a feminist issue or an issue about social equality between the sexes. It’s too tempting for some to claim it’s only an issue about a woman and her body and her right to privacy or her right to choose, but many feel (myself included) that there is another body in that equation, too, and I’m not talking about the father. I’m talking about the baby – or whatever you wish to call it in that stage of development. It’s human. It’s alive. It already has 100% of its unique DNA. The fact it can’t survive on its own yet in no way diminishes its right to life, which has already been given to it at the moment of conception. A newborn baby can’t survive on its own, either, but you can’t kill it, so the fact the unborn can't survive without help is no proof it isn't human and no justifcation to kill it. Anyway, I don’t want to get too deeply into this issue here. Suffice it to say, 750,000 innocent humans are put to death each year in the U.S. alone, and half of them are female. More than half, actually. Worldwide – even more. Gender selection is frowned upon, even by many so-called prochoice advocates, but if a woman has the right to decide for herself who is or is not human, then it would just be hypocritical to suggest gender selection is somehow wrong. I think it is, but I think abortion in most cases is wrong, too, since we’re talking about killing another human being. And, FYI, this is also not a religious point of view I’m pushing. I’m an atheist after all. It’s a philosophical one – a simple application of the philosophy of the golden rule, really. But I digress. Does Disney want to deal with this? Probably not to the degree it will have to be if Rowan is actually a lesbian or a bi-sexual. Then again, it’s not the actors that would cause the problem so much as the characters, so it is very doubtful they’ll allow Riley to be a lesbian or a bisexual. They may or may not allow another more minor character to be so, and probably should, IMO, so they may deal with some important issues, but they got a lot of crap last time they had gay characters in a show. But like most businesses, they care mostly about their bottom line, so if too many sponsors threatened to pull out, they’ll have to squelch the LGBTQ community characters - that is (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning) community characters. If enough of the sponsors don't seem to mind, and the new legal rights for same-sex marriage carry the day, Disney would probably be fine with it. I probably have more than my fair share of progressive social points of view, while being mostly conservative in other areas, particularly fiscal matters, but I’m all for same sex marriage, and/or having such characters on a Disney show, but I think it would become problematic if Riley were one of them. Would Maya be one, too? How would Maya feel about it if Riley suddenly were and Maya wasn't? How will Sabrina feel if Rowan is one and she isn't? The same, and with no alteration of the chemistry between their characters? Besides, I think it’s already fairly well established that those characters both like boys - a lot. This would make it easier to make one or both of them bi-sexual or bi-curious, but not lesbians. But I would think it less realistic they hadn’t already been exhibiting clear signs of leanings in that direction, or less interested in boys than they already have shown themselves both to be, if that were going to be the case. So, to represent the LGBTQ community, it probably should be some new characters – in the new high school, perhaps. You mentioned Rowan’s depression. The only article I could find was one where Rowan denied being depressed and wished people, in general, would quit claiming she’s depressed just because she isn’t smiling and all sunshine in every picture she posts online. Personally, I haven’t noticed any depression in her, but it’s not like I personally know the girl or have talked to her. It might be interesting to talk to her, or even know if she reads this webpage, but I have no idea. Regardless of what Rowan is actually doing or saying about her sexual orientation - it's still vague, IMO - I like the actress, and I wouldn't let her personal life affect my enjoyment of the show. She's an actor. Her character is Riley Mathews. I'll watch the story of Riley Mathews, where ever it may lead, and I'll hope this child star doesn't get ground under the wheels of an uncaring or unfeeling public opinion like so many other child stars have in the past. Keep your head on straight, girl, and be true to yourself, and don't care so much what others think of you - particularly from the Internet and faceless cowards there who feel free to say horrible things in the cloak of cyber anonymity. Good luck.